Koala feedstuff

ABSTRACT

Koalas are natives of Australia and are one of the few mammals whose diet consists almost exclusively of the leaves of native eucalypt trees. The present invention provides a substitute feedstuff for feeding koalas and a method of feeding koalas using the said substitute feedstuff, and a method of preparing the feedstuff.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a replacement feedstuff for koalassuitable for replacing at least in part the koala's natural diet ofeucalypt leaves.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is well known that koalas have extremely specialised feeding habits.Koalas are natives of Australia and are one of the few mammals whosediet consists almost exclusively of the leaves of native eucalypt trees.Eucalyptus trees contain eucalypt oils which are toxic to most animalspecies. Koalas have a metabolism which is adapted to cope with thesetoxins.

However, koalas from a given area feed almost exclusively on a diet madeup of only a very limited number of Eucalyptus species. This specialisedfeeding behaviour makes it very difficult to successfully keep koalas inzoos, particularly where the required Eucalyptus species are not freelyavailable. In practice, it is necessary to give the animals fresh leaveseach day.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provideda feedstuff for feeding koalas which comprises water, ground forage, abinding agent, a sweetener, a lactose-free milk substitute, and eithereucalypt leaf or an equivalent amount of eucalypt oil extract.

PREFERRED FEATURES OF THE INVENTION

Preferably the feedstuff comprises:

60 to 70 wt % water,

10 to 15 wt % ground forage,

5 to 10 wt % binding agent,

0 to 5 wt % sweetener,

5 to 10 wt % lactose-free milk substitute, and either

8 to 12 wt % ground or chopped eucalypt leaf or an equivalent amount ofeucalypt oil extract,

Preferably the feedstuff comprises 65 to 70 wt % water.

Although the feedstuff could be in particulate form, it is preferred tobe in the form of a shaped solid, such as a biscuit.

The ground forage may be ground oaten hay or ground dried grass, but ispreferably ground lucerne (alfalfa) hay. The function of the bindingagent is to bind together the various ingredients and to absorb water.Agar and gelatine are preferred binding agents. Other edible,water-soluble binding agents would readily occur to the person skilledin the art.

According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided amethod of preparing a foodstuff for koalas, comprising the steps of

(a) Dissolving a binding agent in water,

(b) Adding ground forage, a sweetner, a lactose-free milk substitute,and ground eucalypt leaf or an equivalent amount of eucalyptus oilextract,

(c) Mixing,

(d) Rolling the mixture to form a sheet, and

(e) Cutting the sheet into portions.

According to a third aspect of the invention there is provided a liquiddip composition for use in conjunction with the aforesaid foodstuff.

According to a fourth aspect of the invention there is provided a methodof maintaining koalas in captivity comprising the step of feeding tokoalas a feedstuff as set out herein, optionally in conjunction with theabove-mentioned liquid dip composition.

The presence of the sweetener is not essential but is preferred in orderto improve the palatability of the feedstuff. The sweetner is preferablysucrose or other sugar, or an artificial sweetner such as saccharin oraspartame.

The milk substitute should be lactose free, since koalas do not have anenzyme capable of digesting lactose, and provides a suitable source ofprotein, minerals and vitamins. The milk substitute may be in the formof a suitable composition comprising isolated protein, vegetable oils,minerals, and vitamins, and may be derived from soya beans. A suitablemilk substitute is prosobee powder (Prosobee is a trade mark of MeadJohnson). The ground eucalypt leaf content may be made up of a balancedmixture of Eucalyptus species appropriate to the particular koalapopulation. For example, a preferred mixture of species for koalas fromthe New England area of Australia would be Eucalyptus viminalis, E.nova-anglica, E. nicholii and E. blakelyi.

In the region of Sydney, Australia the staple diet consists of E.punctata, E. tereticornis, and E. microcorys.

In the region of Victoria, Australia the staple species include E.viminalis, E. ovata and E. camaldulensis.

In Queensland, Australia the staple species include E. camaldulensis, E.tereticornis, E. crebra and E. populnea.

Feedstuffs for koalas from these regions would generally include thesestaple species, although the koalas also tolerate minor amounts ofadditional species. It is also possible that each batch of feedstuff(e.g. biscuit) would contain a single eucalypt species, the koala beingfed an appropriate mixture of different single-species batches. Thiswould depend on the preferences shown by the animals.

It is possible to replace the ground eucalypt leaf content with anequivalent amount of eucalypt oil extract such that the content ofeucalypt oils in the feedstuff is the same. The oil extract may be amixture of oils from different eucalypts with the oil being preparedfrom leaves of the staple food species, for example by steamdistillation. The leaf may be substituted partially or completely by theoil extract. When oil is used, the abovementioned weight percentages ofthe other constituents will have to be varied accordingly.

In order to improve the palatability of the feedstuff, it may, at leastinitially, be desirable to feed it in conjunction with a liquid dipcomposition comprising:

40 to 75 wt % lactose-free milk substitute

25 to 40 wt % water

0 to 6 wt % sweetener, and

6 to 13 wt % ground eucalypt leaf or the equivalent amount of eucalyptoil extract.

It will usually be necessary to wean the koalas gradually off a diet ofwholly fresh eucalypt leaves onto the substitute feedstuff, and this maybe done by feeding with increasing proportions of the feedstuffoptionally with the dip over a prolonged period.

It has been found that the feedstuff according to the invention has arelatively short shelf-life. It is therefore recommended that thefeedstuff be stored frozen (for up to three months) or preferablyprpared fresh every second day. The feedstuff is therefore adapted to beprepared on site, close to the time of use.

We have found that the preparation and feeding of the feedstuff andliquid dip composition of the invention can readily be incorporated intothe daily routine of a koala keeper.

The invention will now be illustrated by way of reference only to thefollowing non-limiting examples.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION EXAMPLE 1 BISCUIT FORMULATION

The following ingredients were mixed together;

63.6 wt % water,

12.7 wt % ground lucerne,

5.5 wt % agar,

1.8 wt % sucrose

7.3 wt % lactose-free milk substitute, eg Prosobee

9.1 wt % chopped eucalyptus leaf.

The agar was mixed with the water just below boiling point, then therest of the mixture was added and the mixture pressed or rolled flat,then cut into biscuits.

Example 2 BISCUIT FORMULATION WITH FRESH EUCALYPT LEAF

In a second experiment, the following ingredients were mixed together:

400 ml water,

60 g ground lucerne,

38 g agar,

20 g sucrose,

40 g lactose-free milk substitute, e.g. Prosobee

50 g chopped eucalypt leaf.

Biscuits were prepared from this mixture, as in Example 1.

EXAMPLE 3 BISCUIT FORMULATION WITH EXTRACTS OF MIXED EUCALYPT OILS

425 ml water,

88 g ground lucerne,

38 g agar

20 g sucrose

40 g lactose-free substitute, e.g. Prosobee

0.6 ml steam-distilled mixed eucalypt oils.

EXAMPLE 4 DIP COMPOSITION WITH FRESH EUCALYPT LEAF

A liquid dip composition was made up as follows:

210 g lactose-free milk substitute, e.g. Prosobee

290 ml water

40 g sucrose

40 g ground eucalyptus leaf.

The dip composition was optionally used together with the biscuits whenfeeding the koalas.

EXAMPLE 5 DIP COMPOSITION WITH EXTRACT OF MIXED EUCALYPT OILS

A second liquid dip composition was made up as follows:

290 ml water

40 g sucrose,

210 g lactose-free milk substitute, e.g. Prosobee

0.6 ml steam-distilled mixed eucalypt oils.

The dip composition was used as in Example 4.

EXAMPLE 6 PREPARATION OF FEEDSTUFF

Due to the relatively short shelf-life (apporx 24 hrs) it is preferableto prepare the feedstuff fresh every second day. To this end thefeedstuff can be supplied in three components.

Component A (dry in platic bag)

88 g ground lucerne,

20 g sucrose,

40 g lactose-free milk substitute, e.g. Prosobee

Component B (dry in plastic bag

38 g agar

Component C (preferably in capsules)

0.6 ml steam-distilled mixed eucalypt oils.

The prepared feedstuff component B was firstly dissolved in 425 ml waterheated to a temperature just below boiling point. Components A and Cwere then mixed in thoroughly. The mixture is then poured onto a plasticsheet on a flat surface, a second plastic sheet placed on top, and themixture rolled while still hot to a thickness of 2-3 mm. When cooled andset, the feedstuff was cut into portions approximately 2.5cm×8cm.Suitably, the portions are biscuit-like. If fresh eucalypt leaf isavailable, component C can be replaced by 50 g of chopped leaf, and thevolume of water reduced from 425 ml to 400 ml.

EXAMPLE 6 FEEDING OF KOALAS

Biscuits formulated as in Example 1 or Example 2, and preferablyprepared as in Example 5, were fed by hand to koalas. The biscuits mayoptionally first be dipped in a dip formulation as set out in Example 3or 4, depending on the preferences of individual animals.

It will be clearly understood that the invention in its general aspectsis not limited to the specific details referred to hereinabove.

We claim:
 1. A feedstuff for koalas, consisting essentially of60 to 70wt. % water; 10 to 50 wt. % ground forage selected from the groupconsisting of oaten hay, dried grass and lucerne hay; 5 to 10 wt. %binding agent selected from the group consisting of agar and gelatin; 0to 5 wt. % of a sweetener selected from the group consisting of sucroseand artificial sweetener; 5to 10 wt. % lactose-free milk substitute, andeither 8 to 12 wt. % ground eucalypt leaf, an equivalent amount ofeucalypt oil extract, or a mixture thereof.
 2. A feedstuff as recited inclaim 1, wherein the feedstuff comprises 65 to 70 wt. % water.
 3. Afeedstuff as recited in claim 1, wherein the ground forage is lucernehay.
 4. A feedstuff as recited in claim 1, wherein the binding agent isagar.
 5. A feedstuff as recited in claim 4, wherein the sweetener issucrose.
 6. A feedstuff as recited in claim 4, wherein the sweetener isan artificial sweetener.
 7. A feedstuff as recited in claim 6, whereinthe artificial sweetener is selected from the group consisting ofsaccharin and aspartame.
 8. A feedstuff as recited in claim 1, whereinthe lactose-free milk substitute comprises isolated protein, vegetableoils, minerals and vitamins.
 9. A feedstuff as recited in claim 1,wherein the lactose-free milk substitute is soybean-based.
 10. Afeedstuff as recited in claim 1, wherein the ground eucalypt leaf is aground eucalypt leaf of a species selected from the group consisting ofEucalyptus viminalis, E. nova-anglica, E. nicholii, E. blakelyi, E.punctata, E. tereticornis, E. microcorys, E. ovata, E. camaldulensis, E.crebra, E. populnea, and mixtures thereof.
 11. The feedstuff of claim 1,wherein the eucalypt oil extract is a mixture of eucalypt oils extractedfrom eucalypt leaf species selected from the group consisting ofEucalyptus viminalis, E. nova-anglica, E. nicholii, E. blakelyi, E.punctata, E. tereticornis, E. microcorys, E. ovata, E. camaldulensis, E.crebra, E. populnea.
 12. A liquid dip composition consisting essentiallyof:40 to 75 wt. % lactose-free milk substitute; 25 to 40 wt. % water; 0to 6 wt. % sweetener; and 6 to 13 wt. % ground eucalypt leaf or anequivalent amount of eucalypt oil extract.